How to Assemble the Best Heavy Construction Team for Your Next Project

Heavy construction projects such as highways, parking areas, airports, tunnels and bridges are intricate and complex. A crucial component of ensuring a successful outcome – with minimal waste, cost excess or delays – is selecting the best specialty partner for the job. The consideration process includes qualifications, licensure, insurance coverage, and experience in the field. While cost is always a consideration as well, it cannot be the only consideration if the end goal is a quality heavy construction project completed within the project timeline and specifications. 

Prepare a Clear and Comprehensive RFP

A thorough and detailed request for proposal (RFP) will ensure that you have the most relevant information from which to base your selection decision, and helps potential contractors to make a realistic assessment of the project and how they would meet the defined needs and goals. At minimum, the RFP for a heavy construction project should include:

• Project scope
• Preferred materials
• Labor preferences
• Insurance/bonding requirements
• Licensure requirements
• Proposed schedule
• Request for a description of the contractor’s similar experience
• Request for the contractor’s safety record
• Budget
  • For a guideline to help develop an accurate budget for your next heavy construction project, download our free ebook: Tips for Estimating Your Project Right the First Time

A well-written RFP will help the great contractors stand out from the rest, and will streamline the review process so that each proposal is compared equally across a range of relevant criteria.

Identify Qualified Heavy Construction Contractors & Request Proposals

To save time and resources during the proposal review process, RFPs may be issued only to pre-qualified contractors. A key characteristic of experienced, qualified contractors is their license, which may be issued by the state and/or a trade or qualifying board. A list of licensed heavy construction contractors can be obtained from each state’s Department of Business and Professional Regulation, or from local construction Trade Qualifying Boards. 

In addition to licensing, other characteristics can help identify reputable and qualified contractors. These may include: 

• How long the company has been in business
• Their status with the Better Business Bureau
• Safety record
• Relevant certifications
• Equipment quality
• Staff training procedures and policies
• References from other heavy construction projects and clients
• Customer service experience
• Approach to communications
• Quality control

What makes a contractor qualified will differ greatly from one heavy construction project to the next. Be clear up front about the criteria that will be used to assess each contractor’s qualifications, and be explicit in requesting that information in the RFP.

Consider More than Cost

While cost is certainly an important consideration – especially in large, heavy construction projects – it should not be the only determining factor in the selection process.

Once proposals have been received, the review and vetting process should encompass qualifications, certifications, insurances, equipment and employee requirements, company history, a business background check, as well as price-versus-value equations.

The difference between small and large consulting firms often can be found in the level of insurance the contractor carries. Insurance and bonding, and whether the company is considered A-rated by its carrier, are important considerations. A business background check can be conducted using resources from Dun & Bradstreet, the Better Business Bureau, and the State, County or Local Board of licensure.

Other key components of the proposals that will help reveal whether a contractor is the best choice for a heavy construction project include:

• Do bids clearly identify the type of product/service?
• What is estimated time frame to complete the work?
• What type of equipment will be used on the job?
• Is the staff trained or versed in different materials applied or concepts employed, such as Americans with Disabilities Act compliance, green certification or sustainable methods?
• Does the proposal include professional, detailed phasing plans to outline how the project will progress?
• Is the company willing to provide value-based engineering alternatives, or different options based on the project’s budget?
• Are all company representatives professional, courteous, and responsive to inquiries?
• Does the proposal provide testimonials and photographs of prior projects?

Together with a cost analysis, this information will help identify which contractors will provide the best value along with the best track record and potential for an on-time, high quality contribution to the project. 

For a guideline to help develop an accurate project budget, download Basic Construction’s free ebook: Tips for Estimating Your Project Right the First Time for easy ways to estimate costs from the very beginning of every project. And if your next heavy construction project is located in Eastern Virginia, contact us at (757) 249-3789 to schedule a paving consultation or to request a bid.